Showing results by narrator "Sam Dale" in All Categories

A treasure chest of timeless short stories by some of the world's greatest authors.

This superlative collection of children's stories brings together a feast of fantastic fiction, read in full by a host of top narrators and with a comprehensive track listing for ease of listening. Comprising everything from fairytales for little ones to thrilling adventures for pre-teens, these unabridged readings are ideal for families to keep, treasure and dip into as their children grow. 

This dramatisation of Jonathan Franzen's acclaimed, epic, award-winning novel revolves around the troubles of an elderly Midwestern couple and their three adult children, tracing their lives from the mid-20th century to 'one last Christmas' together near the turn of the millennium. A family saga, that sits against the backdrop of this century's changing face of America, the novel was published 10 days before 9/11 but is widely considered an observation of what happened to the American psyche after 9/11. 

Ursula K. Le Guin was one of the most revered and influential writers of the 20th century. Her Earthsea books have sold millions of copies and been translated into numerous languages, while her trailblazing novel The Left Hand of Darkness was a landmark in feminist science fiction and ranks among the greatest SF novels of all time. This BBC collection brings together the magical radio retellings of both these seminal classics.

Unabridged readings of four spine-tingling stories. This suspenseful anthology collects together four gripping tales of gruesome scientific experiments and chilling supernatural events - all read in full by some of the very best voice actors. With over 18 hours of electrifying listening, tracked by chapter, these classic tales will have you on the edge of your seat.

BY THE ACCLAIMED AUTHOR OF THE HANDMAID'S TALE Sometimes I whisper it over to myself: Murderess. Murderess. It rustles, like a taffeta skirt along the floor. Grace Marks. Female fiend? Femme fatale? Or weak and unwilling victim? Around the true story of one of the most enigmatic and notorious...

The complete collected dramatisations of C. J. Sansom's historical mystery series Set during the reign of Henry VIII, these six stunning dramas follow the adventures of hunchbacked lawyer-detective Matthew Shardlake as he navigates the dangerous world of Tudor England, solving crimes and seeking...

Mary Elizabeth Braddon was one of the most important and influential female novelists of the 19th Century, and the founder (alongside Wilkie Collins) of the popular 'sensation fiction' genre. This collection features her best-known novel, Lady Audley's Secret, a thrilling tale of bigamy, murder and arson that outraged Victorian society on its first release—and was an instant bestseller. Also included are two atmospheric short stories and an edition of Sensational Women exploring her life and work.

Fast-talking, trouble-seeking private eye Philip Marlowe is a different kind of detective: a moral man in an amoral world. California in the ’40s and ’50s is as beautiful as a ripe fruit and rotten to the core, and Marlowe must struggle to retain his integrity amidst the corruption he...

Trevor Peacock (The Vicar of Dibley) stars as inspired chef Warwick Hedges, in this comedy drama set in an idiosyncratic restaurant in the Cambridgeshire Fens. Warwick’s son Jack works alongside his father, which makes him permanently anxious. They are assisted by Samuel, an earthy odd-job man...

Toby Stephens stars in this BBC Radio 4 full-cast dramatisation of Raymond Chandler’s second Philip Marlowe mystery.Fast-talking, trouble-seeking private eye Philip Marlowe is a different kind of detective: a moral man in an amoral world. California in the ’40s and ’50s is as beautiful as a ripe fruit and rotten to the core, and Marlowe must struggle to retain his integrity amidst the corruption he encounters daily.In ‘Farewell My Lovely’, Marlowe has a chance encounter with a not-so-gentle giant outside Florian’s nightclub.

How does it feel to have your world blown apart? Molly moves to London full of naive dreams, high hopes and on a quest to make her life just like the movies. Then on 7/7/2005 she finds herself on a tube train blown up by terrorists and her life is forced to take a different direction. Funny...

Arthur Conan Doyle is well known as the creator of Sherlock Holmes, but he also wrote numerous works in which the great detective played no part. Included here are a selection of the best, ranging from science fiction to tales of supernatural terror and rip-roaring adventures set in Jacobean and Regency England.

Best-selling author Joanna Trollope has been described as one of the most insightful chroniclers and social commenters writing fiction today. Her books have been translated into over 25 languages, and several have been adapted for television. This collection comprises the BBC Radio dramatisations of her historical novel Parson Harding's Daughter (written under the nom de plume Caroline Harvey) and two of her most popular contemporary novels, A Spanish Lover and Second Honeymoon, as well as an edition of the literary chat show The Book Café.

A BBC Radio 4 drama looking at the impact on a divorcing couple of recent changes to British prenuptial law. Originally broadcast as the 'Afternoon Play' on 21 January 2011. Two academics, British Paul (Sam Dale) and American Amy (Sally Orrock), have married in the US with a prenuptial...

At the heart of this explosive BBC Radio 4 comedy-drama are two morally opposed characters, both in love with the same woman, who has just - tragically - died. Originally broadcast as the 'Afternoon Play' on 22 March 2011, The Magnificent Andrea is the first original radio play by Nigel Planer...

A BBC Radio 4 full-cast dramatisation by Michael Butt about the death of the poet and playwright Christopher Marlowe, originally broadcast in the ‘Afternoon Play’ slot on 17 August 2010. In May 1593, the playwright Christopher Marlowe was killed. Apparently, it was because of an argument...

The Laws is the longest of Plato’s Dialogues and actually doesn’t feature Socrates at all - the principal figure taking the lead is the ‘Athenian Stranger’ who engages two older men in the discussion, Cleinias (from Crete) and Megillus (from Sparta). The Dialogue is set in Crete, and the three men embark on a pilgrimage from Knossus to the cave of Dicte, where, legend reports, Zeus was born. 

BBC Radio 4's extraordinary evocation of the experience of moonrise over the Severn Estuary, by award-winning poet Alice Oswald. Originally broadcast as the 'Afternoon Play' on 10 March 2011. Set to original music by Roger Goula, the subject of 'A Sleepwalk on the Severn' is moonrise, which...

A pacy BBC Radio 4 comedy drama by Ali Taylor, lifting the lid on the ethics of publishing war-torn misery memoirs. Emma discovers a brilliant new talent in the unsolicited pile... Originally broadcast as the ‘Afternoon Play’ on 20 May 2010. When a heartbreaking memoir about life in...